Prev: The idea behind a uniform is to identify a person as being part of an institution be it a school, factory or a hotel. Hotel uniforms are a must for any kind of hotel. The hotel staff must be readily identifiable via their work wear. A hotel uniform d
Next: Wholesale Rolex Cosmoguraph Daytona Leather Band Men's Watches RX021 Discount, Fake Watch
From: Jeffrey L. Hook on 23 Apr 2008 02:53
1. Are Intel Xeon or Itanium processors ever used in high-performance
single-processor desktop personal computer systems?

2. Are these processors so customized for multiple-processor systems that
they'd be inappropriate in single-processor systems?

3. Are these processors inferior to high-end processors such as Intel's
Core 2 Quad processors for use in single-processor personal computer
systems?

+++++++++++++++++++++

(Optional background information):

I'm selecting components for my first Do It Yourself system unit. I'd
decided to choose one of Intel's three Core 2 Quad 45 nm processors
but I then found Intel's "Public Roadmap" for the second half of calendar
year 2007, at:

http://download.intel.com/products/roadmap/roadmap.pdf#nameddest=desktop_roadmap


This document lists Intel's recommend processor, chipset, and MoBo
combinations for various system types. Page 4 lists Consumer Desktop
combinations and page 10 lists "Server: Workstation" combinations. Xenon
processors were recommended for servers and for workstations and
that led me to wonder if I should investigate the use of Xenon or Itanium
processors in high-performance home desktop systems.

I assume these processors have been designed for multiple-processor
"enterprise-level" systems, such as servers in which large numbers of
processors can be "scaled" to work together. I also assume workstation
systems are most often used for high performance purposes, such as CAD,
scientific modeling, etc. I don't expect to use my new system for those
types of work. My system will include only one processor and it won't even
be used in a home LAN; it'll be a stand-alone unit.

I'm not an overclocker or a gamer now and I'm not likely to be in the
future. I'm not likely to need 3D graphics capability. A Core 2 Quad
processor may be more than I'll need, based on my *current* uses, but I
don't want to build my first DIY system around a "down-market" processor. I
made that mistake
with my present OEM system. I can't know what future uses I might want to
make of my new system, and I therefore thought it might be best to equip
this new system with the fastest, most powerful processor I can obtain, with
the largest caches and with the fastest FSB in my price range.

I'm assuming that it's best to obtain excess capacity in terms of HDD size,
PSU output, processor capability, etc. to allow for unexpected future needs,
and to avoid over-stressing the components by assuring that they have plenty
of reserve capacity.

I've decided I don't need Intel's Viiv technology because it seems to be
designed for high definition video, television, media center, and other uses
which I don't expect to make of my system. I've also assumed that Intel's
vPro technology isn't appropriate for my system, because those processors
seem to be intended to support enterprise-level systems administration
software which I'll not be using. However I haven't yet been able to
determine if a Xeon or an Itanium processor might be desirable in my system
and I didn't want to rule out any possible benefits.

Thanks.

Jeff Hook, NJ, USA


From: Andrew Smallshaw on 24 Apr 2008 07:13
On 2008-04-23, Jeffrey L. Hook <NoOne(a)NoSpam.com> wrote:
> 1. Are Intel Xeon or Itanium processors ever used in high-performance
> single-processor desktop personal computer systems?
>
> 2. Are these processors so customized for multiple-processor systems that
> they'd be inappropriate in single-processor systems?
>
> 3. Are these processors inferior to high-end processors such as Intel's
> Core 2 Quad processors for use in single-processor personal computer
> systems?

It sounds here as if you are after general purpose machine rather
than anything specialised so forget about Itanium straight away -
it isn't x86 compatible. If you need Itanium you probably already
know it and if you didn't know it you probably wouldn't be asking
on the homebuilt groups.

As for Xeon, yes, they are used singly occasionally, mainly with
servers or workstation-class desktops that begin life as uniprocessor
but have multi-processor capability for future upgrades. A single
chip offers few benefits over a mainstream chip. The larger cache
is a benefit but the amount you pay for it isn't really an efficient
use of resources. The performance improvement is essentially
marginal over an equivalent spec mainstream part and you are spending
a sizable premium for no good reason.

> I'm assuming that it's best to obtain excess capacity in terms of HDD size,
> PSU output, processor capability, etc. to allow for unexpected future needs,
> and to avoid over-stressing the components by assuring that they have plenty
> of reserve capacity.

In my experience it pays to get a roomier hard drive than you think
you need, provided the price differential is not too great. However,
for most other situations I'd advise _against_ deliberately buying
excess capacity either to attempt to future-proof your machine or
gain reliability. This only changes if you have clear future needs
and a clear timescale for when those needs will arise, in other
situations it usually turns out to be a waste of money.

Buy what you need now now and use the money you save to upgrade at
a later date when you actually need that extra capacity. There
are better methods of gaining reliability. At the most basic level
simply buying quality kit helps a lot - it doesn't need to be
high-end to be good quality.

--
Andrew Smallshaw
andrews(a)sdf.lonestar.org

From: Jeffrey L. Hook on 24 Apr 2008 08:35

**Thanks**, Andrew.


"Andrew Smallshaw" <andrews(a)sdf.lonestar.org> wrote in message
news:slrng10qqv.gj1.andrews(a)sdf.lonestar.org...

It sounds here as if you are after general purpose machine rather
than anything specialised so forget about Itanium straight away -
it isn't x86 compatible. If you need Itanium you probably already
know it and if you didn't know it you probably wouldn't be asking
on the homebuilt groups.

As for Xeon, yes, they are used singly occasionally, mainly with
servers or workstation-class desktops that begin life as uniprocessor
but have multi-processor capability for future upgrades. A single
chip offers few benefits over a mainstream chip. The larger cache
is a benefit but the amount you pay for it isn't really an efficient
use of resources. The performance improvement is essentially
marginal over an equivalent spec mainstream part and you are spending
a sizable premium for no good reason.

> I'm assuming that it's best to obtain excess capacity in terms of HDD
> size,
> PSU output, processor capability, etc. to allow for unexpected future
> needs,
> and to avoid over-stressing the components by assuring that they have
> plenty
> of reserve capacity.

In my experience it pays to get a roomier hard drive than you think
you need, provided the price differential is not too great. However,
for most other situations I'd advise _against_ deliberately buying
excess capacity either to attempt to future-proof your machine or
gain reliability. This only changes if you have clear future needs
and a clear timescale for when those needs will arise, in other
situations it usually turns out to be a waste of money.

Buy what you need now and use the money you save to upgrade at
a later date when you actually need that extra capacity. There
are better methods of gaining reliability. At the most basic level
simply buying quality kit helps a lot - it doesn't need to be
high-end to be good quality.

--
Andrew Smallshaw
andrews(a)sdf.lonestar.org


 | 
Pages: 1
Prev: The idea behind a uniform is to identify a person as being part of an institution be it a school, factory or a hotel. Hotel uniforms are a must for any kind of hotel. The hotel staff must be readily identifiable via their work wear. A hotel uniform d
Next: Wholesale Rolex Cosmoguraph Daytona Leather Band Men's Watches RX021 Discount, Fake Watch